Apple Messages for Business vs MessageBlue

Apple Messages for Business supports 19 of the 77 features compared here, and MessageBlue supports 38.

Feature comparison

Feature	Apple Messages for Business	MessageBlue
iMessage messaging
iMessage	PartialBusiness chats inside Apple Messages, not person-to-person iMessage from a number	Supported
Group chats	Not supportedGroup chat with a business is not supported	SupportedSend text, attachments and voice notes to groups; receive group messages.
Group management	Not supported	PartialCreate groups of 2 to 31 by API; no add or remove participant endpoints.
Group name and photo	Not supported	Not listed
Mentions	Not supported	Not listed
Tapbacks	PartialCustomer tapbacks arrive as text; business-sent tapbacks not documented	SupportedSend or remove emoji or tapbacks; inbound tapbacks arrive by webhook.
Threaded replies	Not listed	Not listed
Typing indicators	SupportedBoth directions	SupportedSend and stop, up to 20 seconds; no inbound typing webhook documented.
Read receipts	Not supportedNot among the message types Apple sends to MSPs	SupportedSend read receipts; outbound messages report a read status.
Edit and unsend	Not listed	Not listed
Message effects	Not listed	Not listed
Animated text effects	Not listed	Not listed
Stickers	PartialReceive only: customer sticker reactions arrive as text plus an image	Not listed
Formatted text	Not listed	Not listed
Attachments	SupportedFiles up to 100MB, encrypted before upload	SupportedAttachments by public URL.
Live Photos	Not listed	Not listed
Rich link previews	SupportedRich Link messages with image, title and inline video; required for MSPs	Not listed
Voice messages	Not listed	SupportedTo individuals and groups.
Contact cards	Not listed	Not listed
Polls	Not listedNot documented; List Pickers, Quick Replies and Forms handle choices	Not listed
Chat backgrounds	Not listed	Not listed
Location sharing	Not listed	Not listed
iMessage apps	SupportedCustom iMessage app and App Extension messages	Not listed
Live app cards	Not listediMessage app messages take a session ID and Live Layout flag; in-place updates not described	Not listed
Sender name and photo	SupportedVerified brand name and square logo set in Apple Business Register	Not listed
FaceTime calls	Not listed	Not listedInbox video call button is marked coming soon; voice calls need the team to enable.
Delivery status	PartialSends return HTTP status codes; no delivered or read events	Supportedsent, delivered, read, SMS_FALLBACK and failed via status webhook.
iMessage availability check	Not listedMSPs get a device capability list, but no iMessage reachability check	SupportedCheck a number, or a whole group's participants, before sending.
Focus and Notify Anyway	Not listed	Not listed
Numbers and delivery
Managed lines	Not supportedNo phone lines; brands get an Apple-assigned Business ID	SupportedRequest a number and the team provisions it, typically in 3 to 5 business days.
Dedicated numbers	Not supportedBusiness accounts don't use phone numbers	Supported$100/mo per line on Startups & SMB.
Shared numbers	Not supported	Not listed
Bring your own number	Not supportedRegistered business numbers only power Message Suggest; nothing is sent from them	SupportedPair your own Mac and its Apple ID number with the MessageBlue agent.
Line pooling	Not supportedBusiness accounts don't use phone numbers	SupportedAssigns the least-mapped number per contact and remaps contacts if a number is blocked.
SMS fallback	PartialApple expects MSPs to fall back to SMS when an invitation can't be delivered	SupportedStatus event reports SMS_FALLBACK; not available for group creation.
RCS fallback	Not listed	Not listedMarketing pages say SMS or RCS fallback; docs only describe SMS.
Outbound-first messaging	PartialApple-approved template invitations to opted-in numbers only; iOS 18+	SupportedStart chats with any iMessage-capable number; warns after 5 unanswered messages.
Calls on the iMessage number	Not supportedBusiness accounts don't use phone numbers	Not listedInbox voice call button says to contact the team; number used is not stated.
Other channels
SMS	Not supportedNot offered by Apple; MSPs may add other channels	PartialOnly as fallback; new chats need an iMessage-capable recipient.
RCS	Not supported	Not listedMentioned only as a fallback on marketing pages.
WhatsApp	Not supported	Not supportedNot offered
Telegram	Not supported	Not supported
Slack	Not supported	Not supported
Email	Not supported	Not supported
Phone calls	Not supportedNot offered; Message Suggest offers a chat instead of a call	Not listedInbox voice call button says to contact the team; call type and number not stated.
Apple Messages for Business	SupportedThis is Apple's channel itself	Not supportedNot offered
Unified channel API	Not supportedSingle channel	PartialOne API for iMessage and its SMS fallback only.
Developer tools
REST API	PartialREST API for Apple-approved MSPs only; brands connect through an MSP	SupportedOpenAPI 3.1 spec published.
TypeScript SDK	Not listed	Supportednpm messageblue (0.0.7), generated from the OpenAPI spec.
Python SDK	Not listed	Not supportedDocs say only TypeScript is published today; other languages on request.
Other SDKs	Not listed	Not supported
CLI	Not listed	Not listedThe API page mentions a CLI, but none is documented.
Webhooks	PartialApple posts inbound messages to the MSP's endpoint; MSPs only	SupportedInbound and status URLs with retries and dead-lettering.
Signed webhooks	SupportedEvery request carries an HS256-signed JWT	SupportedX-MB-Signature: HMAC-SHA256 over timestamp and raw body.
MCP server	Not listed	PartialDocumentation-only MCP server at docs.messageblue.ai/_mcp/server.
Open source	Not supportedApple-run proprietary service	Not listed
Self-hosting	Not supportedBots must connect through an Apple-approved MSP, not directly	SupportedEnterprise plan: your cloud (BYOC), VPC or on-prem
Local testing	Not listedTesting uses internal test accounts on real Apple devices	PartialBrowser test bench runs the no-code agent without sending an iMessage.
Custom channel providers	Not listed	Not listed
Event replay	PartialApple retries only 5xx deliveries, 4 times with backoff from 100ms	SupportedFailed and dead-lettered deliveries are kept and can be replayed.
OpenTelemetry	Not listed	Not listed
No-code integrations	Not listed	SupportedZapier, plus a no-code agent builder.
CRM integrations	PartialThrough MSPs, which integrate CRMs and other back-end systems	SupportedAgent connects to Salesforce, HubSpot and others; HubSpot inbox sync is private beta.
Built for AI agents
Agent framework	Not listed	SupportedNo-code agent with model choice, prompt, knowledge, tools, memory and multi-step tasks.
Agent framework integrations	Not supportedBots must connect through an Apple-approved MSP	Not listedSite says it works with LangChain and the Vercel AI SDK via webhooks; no official integration.
Streaming replies	Not listed	Not listed
Agent group chats	Not supportedGroup chat with a business is not supported	Not listed
Human handoff	SupportedA live agent path is mandatory; bot-only deployments are not approved	SupportedTeam inbox for manual replies; pause the agent or block it per contact.
Audit logs	Not listed	SupportedOn the Business and Enterprise plans
Message history API	Not listed	SupportedConversation by phone number.
Plans and compliance
Free plan	PartialApple charges nothing; MSPs charge for their platforms	Supported$0 when you bring your own number on your own Mac; every feature included.
Public pricing	Not supportedCost depends on the MSP; Apple's part is free	SupportedFree and $100/mo listed; Business and Enterprise are contact sales.
No per-message fees	Not listedApple charges nothing; MSP pricing models vary	SupportedFlat $100/mo per line.
Uptime SLA	Not listed	Supported99.9% SLA listed from the $100 plan; the API page says enterprise plans
Isolated infrastructure	Not listed	SupportedEnterprise plan: single-tenant or self-hosted stack
SOC 2 Type II	Not listed	PartialEnterprise page claims audited SOC 2 Type II; pricing says SOC 2 ready; no report found.
GDPR	Not listed	Not listed

Checked on each provider's own site and docs on 2026-10-25. “Not listed” means the provider does not mention it.

Pricing

Which should you choose?

Choose Apple Messages for Business if you need stickers, rich link previews, iMessage apps and sender name and photo.

Choose MessageBlue if you need group chats, group management, read receipts and voice messages.

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